With the Injury of Drew Ogletree, it’s time for Jelani Woods to step up for the Colts
By Dailey Gee
With the Indianapolis Colts losing the promising Drew Ogletree for the season, all eyes are now on fellow rookie tight end Jelani Woods.
Drew Ogletree was having arguably one of the best camps out of all of the Indianapolis Colts on the roster. Sadly, he tore his ACL in practice and will begin the recovery process per coach Frank Reich. He was going to have a big role on this team for this upcoming season with so many questions on the offense. With him out, the Colts will take the next man up approach which means Jelani Woods will be that guy.
Woods, also a rookie tight end, was drafted before Ogletree by Indianapolis in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft. While he hasn’t been having as good of a camp as Ogletree was, It sounds like Woods will be a factor on this Colts team this season.
At 6-foot-7, people are raving about his size and athleticism and he can be a big target for Matt Ryan. Woods has drawn comparisons to his running mate, Mo Alie-Cox. These two huge targets will be good for Ryan this season.
Good chat with Colts TE coach Klayton Adams yesterday, and he had some context on rookie Jelani Woods: "What Jelani will be asked to do during the regular season is a lot different than what we’re asking him to do during training camp — 'cuz we just wanna see how much he can do."
— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) August 16, 2022
Jelani Woods is starting to step up in camp
The whole Colts’ offense had a great day on the first day of Indy’s joint practice with the Detroit Lions, but on the second day, Woods was one of the guys that were making big plays. With his ability to rise up over the defense and make contested catches, Woods can be a big-time playmaker.
The tight end core has not been one that has been flashy, so to speak, but Woods can be the bright spot of the group. You can make the case that he will be the second tight end on this depth chart when the season starts if he keeps improving his play in camp, and making plays as he did in the preseason game last Saturday against the Bills.
Expectations for Jelani Woods in 2022
I expect Woods to have a size-able role on this Colts team in his rookie year. He will play alongside Alie-Cox and will be a good target in the red zone. I think he will have a big impact in the run game as well with blocking. He is a good blocker and can be utilized in very many ways.
Woods will probably catch a couple of touchdowns this season but his stats likely won’t be flashy to start, but he will do things that will benefit Indianapolis. As his career progresses, he will see a type of role like one of Mo Alie-Cox.
It is going to be exciting to see if Jelani Woods is ready to be thrown into the fire. He is going to play right away and will have a role for this team this upcoming season. Woods is a highlight waiting to happen. I believe we will see big things out of Jelani sooner than later in Indianapolis.
